Former Fine Gael politician confirms guilty pleas on money laundering charges

Former mayor of Longford Frank Kilbride has confirmed his guilty pleas in relation to three counts of money laundering involving property worth €2.6 million.

At a brief hearing of Longford Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday, the 69-year-old former Fine Gael councillor confirmed he had pleaded guilty to the offences in November at Longford District Court.

Vincent Heneghan SC, for Kilbride, told the court that a psychiatric report and other reports on his client were being prepared and that the issue of victim impact statements did not arise.

He asked that Kilbride’s bail conditions be changed so that he had to sign on only once every two weeks rather than once every week at Granard Garda station. Judge Kenneth Connolly changed the conditions of bail as requested and remanded Kilbride on continuing bail to July 9th next, with the case also listed for mention on June 17th.

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The former councillor, with an address at Aughakilmore, Ballinalee, Co Longford, has pleaded guilty to three charges of converting, transferring, handling, acquiring, possessing and using property that is the proceeds of criminal conduct, while knowing that, or believing, or being reckless as to whether or not the property was the proceeds of criminal conduct.

The charges relate to periods between October 2017 and March 2018, November 2017 and March 2019, and September 2017 and November 2017, and involve, respectively, property to the value of €1,727,420, €867,143, and €10,000.

Kilbride served three times as a Fine Gael councillor in Co Longford having been elected in 1999, 2004 and 2009. He was an unsuccessful candidate in 2014 and 2019 when he put himself forward to represent the Granard area in the local elections, and again in the general election in 2020 when he went forward as an independent in Longford-Westmeath.

Kilbride is a well-known figure in the midlands because of his work as a musician, music manager and presenter of a country music programme on Shannonside Radio, as well as his former association with the Park House Hotel in Edgeworthstown and his involvement in local politics.

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